Love, death and demons
by FireFlyFlies
Summary: He used to have nightmares about her. She would beckon him, her lips would curl up into a bewitching smile. She would reach out to him. But he never even came close to touching her. Every time he tried and his fingers were just inches away, she would dissolve into thin air. Gallowglass/OC
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

There was a storm brewing at sea. The wind was howling as it hit the sails, as if worshipping the full moon above, and the waves crashed against the ships trying to sink it. Gallowglass had been on the lookout for other ships. He was the only one of the crew that dared to climb the mast in this weather. He'd gotten bored pretty soon though, as any sane captain would get their ship to shore as soon as the storm hit. Everyone knew that, so no one expected to come across anything valuable tonight. That was, until the Spanish ship was spotted not too far North from their position. It caused quite an uproar on The Fortune Rose as Gallowglass noticed it and started shouting down to the captain what he'd seen. He grinned widely as he slid down the mast and landed with a thud, picking up his sword and knives. Finally some action. They'd been wandering the seas looking for ships to loot for what felt like ages, even for a vampire. Now it seems the time had finally come.

It all went extremely smooth considering the weather conditions. They were faster than the Spanish ship, and so were within a few hundred feet quickly. The men started riling each other up, but Gallowglass stayed quiet, calculating how long he would have to wait before jumping the ship to not appear too unhuman. He decided a few feet should do, if he used the rope, so he climbed into the ropes, turning around to face the Spanish ship as it approached. That is when he first noticed her. A girl in a blue dress. She had long wavy blonde hair reaching to her hips, the golden strands carefully lifted and lowered by the wind as if it was caressing them. The blue dress was decorated with white frizzles over its skirt, which reached to her ankles. White socks with blue frizzles at the top, and black tapping shoes finished the out-of-place image. He watched her as the Spanish were hurrying all over the ship in an attempt to wade off the pirates. She just stood in the middle of all that chaos, looking out at the moon from where she was standing at the bow (front) of the ship, on the railing. She was leaning against the bowsprit, which was the wooden log sticking out from the front of the ship. She didn't look the least bit concerned, which was a huge contrast to her surroundings. No one else seemed to pay attention to her however, as she just stood there.

They were close enough now for the first pirate to board the Spanish ship, and Gallowglass decided that he would watch first what would happen before jumping down. A few of the pirates got shot, others had the upper hand and had stolen the weapons of the Spanish for their own use, laughing manically as they shot them in return. At the sound of the first gunshots the girl turned around, facing the battle. Gallowglass jumped onto the deck, never letting his eyes wander from the captivating beauty in front of him. Her eyes found her admirer within seconds, and they both stared in deep wonder at the other.

She couldn't be older than 15, Gallowglass noted, yet her two-colored eyes showed a depth that made her seem twice that age. Her left eye was a deep blue, like the sea on a stormy night like this. Her right a green he had only seen in the depths of the amazon jungle. They both stood out against her paper white skin, and her blonde hair that seemed to be glowing in the light of the full moon. There was something else. She had a scar, running from just above her left eyebrow, over the bridge of her nose to behind the bend of the right side of her face, just below her ear. One might expect that mark on her skin to diminish her beauty, even if slightly, however Gallowglass didn't think so. The opposite, it showed him she was strong underneath the fragile outward appearance. It also told him she had a story worth telling, which he hoped he'd one day hear. But her appearance wasn't the thing that stood out most, even though it did a good job. It was her posture that struck him. He'd seen how she'd been on the railing from his earlier vantage point, keeping up a balancing act acrobats would envy against the angry waves of the Atlantic ocean. He hadn't seen the look on her face however, as she'd been standing with her back facing him. Now he could see how her eyes and face showed a tranquility so out of place for the situation it was eerily beautiful. Her mouth was set in a straight thin line, as if she knew deep in her heart there was no other way. As she looked at him once more, her lips curled into an almost apologetic smile. She spread her arms as if she wanted to fly, and she did. He noticed how her body started tipping slowly backward, over the railing. His body reacted before his mind even registered what exactly was happening, as if there was an invisible chain linking them together. Even with his vampire speed however, he couldn't reach her before she had thrown herself off the bow of the ship. He quickly searched the sea for any sign of her, but she had already disappeared into the crashing waves. Again, he didn't think, as he threw his sword down and dove overboard after the unknown girl that had captured his heart and soul in that one tiny glimpse of a smile she'd directed at him right before she tipped overboard. He searched the waves, he searched everywhere, yet he never found her. She'd vanished. Most likely been pulled to the depths of the ocean where the rest of the ship's remains and the crew remain to this day. And with her, so had a piece of his very soul.

Gallowglass never forgot how she had looked that day, and what she was wearing as she stood on the ledge of the ship ready to fly away. He used to have nightmares about her. She would beckon him, those tight lips would curl up into a bewitching smile meant only for him. She would call his name. Reach out to him. But he never even came close to touching her. Every time he tried and his fingers were just inches away, she would dissolve into thin air and leave him empty handed.

He would wake up with a start every time, feeling a deep ache in his heart. His father and his father's mate Fernando, both worried about him. The first decade after the event he wasn't himself. The decades following he slowly regained his easygoing ways. Yet always a trace remained of this one memory.

The dreams slowly faded, as anything did when you lived as long as vampires do. The memories too. Though every now and then they resurfaced again in a dream. He wasn't sure what triggered them this time, or maybe he was. His love for Diana probably played a role in him remembering the mate he'd never actually met.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Gallowglass had fled the estate in England after Matthew had returned. He couldn't bear to witness their happiness and the heartache that accompanied it. He was happy for his uncle and aunt that they were together again, but still. He would definitely like to smash something right about now. Like some skulls. Currently however, in this day and age, there weren't many battles where soldiers wielded axes anymore. They all seemed to use guns. That's how he found himself somewhere in rural Africa, helping the indigenous people take their villages back. He was hailed as a god there, which wasn't strange considering his golden locks and incredible strength. Not to mention the way he wielded that axe, as if he'd been born to do so. They'd offered him their best cabin to sleep in, but he'd politely refused. He enjoyed the outdoors too much, especially with all the stars visible in this part of Africa. All in all it was a good distraction, and it kept him busy.

At one point during his rather unusual crusade, he got caught in a small dispute between two vampires over in the desert. Something regarding the border of one household having been crossed one too many times. He couldn't say he minded, considering it was a whole lot more promising a fight than with humans who died after one strike. He did however get outmaneuvered by one of them and tackled to the ground. He was about to strike back when they all froze, hearing humans coming their way. The other two vampires rather not be seen by the humans, as that could cause an entirely different dispute concerning property and borders, disappeared in a split second. Gallowglass however had already been spotted, judging by the sounds of the human men. They came running up to him with their clubs, threateningly. One of them took place behind him and clubbed him on the head. Of course as a vampire that didn't do much except maybe annoy him a little, but Gallowglass decided to play along anyway. He pretended to fall back down, unconscious. It wasn't that hard for a vampire to play dead, mostly just boring, but Gallowglass had always been interested in the nature of human decision making. This would just be another observation of humans in their natural habitat. He could easily slip away if it got _too_ boring, so what could be the harm in playing along now?

He expected them to carry him all the way back to camp, as that was a custom for African tribes in that region. They would bring what they found up to the tribe leader and he would decide what would happen. As usual his estimations of human behavior were correct. They needed 6 men to load him up on a cart, and a donkey to pull it as they started towards their camp.

It took them about an hour to reach it. He recognized it by the sounds of the women cooking, and children playing. As they neared he also noticed a voice that somehow felt out of place. Mostly because it was female and speaking English.

"Oh god…" It whispered as he heard hurried footsteps coming closer. "What did you do this time….?"

She took a deep breath, _"What happened?"_ she asked in French. One of the men started explaining in French how 'the white man had looked dangerous so they decided to incapacitate him. '

"There's a difference between incapacitate and murder…" she whispered to herself as he felt her warmth against his right arm. He took a deliberate deep breath, making sure she wouldn't notice right away, to take in the strange woman's scent. There were so many scents surrounding her it was difficult to figure out which were her own and which were artificial. He smelled a bunch of make-up, which was a little strange in this part of the world, even if she was an American. Also hair dye, which stung a little in his nose. There was also a salty ocean-like scent, which indicated she'd been sweating in today's heat. Through all those scents he thought he could smell a hint of coconut and vanilla, but it wasn't easily discernible even with his vampire nose. As the wind picked up his nostrils flared. There was one additional, rather specific, scent. He knew it all too well with his uncle's and aunt's special friends. Now that he'd picked up on the scent he also noticed the energy pulsating inside of her that often accompanied such creatures. She was a demon alright.

"Please don't be dead. Please don't be dead." She whispered as he suddenly felt her warm fingers reach up to feel a pulse and the brush of a few hairs against his shoulder. As her fingers touched his skin he could hear her heart skip a beat in reaction to her recognizing what he was. She didn't feel long enough to actually be able to feel my pulse, considering I'd slowed it down, but I guessed she'd felt the cold of my skin and had deduced my vampiric traits. "Stay dead…" she whispered too soft for anyone else to hear. I had to suppress a smile at her words and held my face stoic. I didn't have to listen. I could easily wipe out this entire village and her included. However I was never one for senseless killing, at least not after my early years had passed, and I was kind of curious what this lass would do.

_"Ok he's going to be alright. But we need to get him to the clinic."_ she said in fluent French. There was still a hint of her English accent but only if you knew to look for it.

_"But he tried to kill us. We need to-"_ one of the men started protesting.

_"Listen ok, I promised your chief I would help your men if they were harmed _on the condition_ I was allowed to also treat your enemies." _She paused a moment for effect._ "Now, take him to the clinic."*_ she sounded authoritative enough in my ears but I could still hear the man murmuring how he didn't agree. _"Do I need to call the chief? Again?"_

"_Non, Madame." _He quickly said, and the cart started moving again. They were en-route for at least an hour to the clinic, but the woman never once faltered or sighed in exhaustion as most other non-vampires would have definitely done. Instead he heard her telling the other men to 'hurry it up already'. They slowed as they arrived near the clinic, he guessed by the sounds of beeping heart monitors and a lot of coughing. "Get him onto a bed." She ordered the men around and he felt himself being hoisted over to a softer surface.

She thanked them when he was settled on what he guessed was the hospital bed, and told them to 'hold on' as she hurried inside. She came out and gave one of the younger men something. _"Give this to little Kiji." _she told him. _"Do not miss a dose. Every day before the sun goes down."_

_"Merci beaucoup, madame. Pour votre aide." _The young man told her earnestly. "It's just my job." She said kindly, in English this time. After they left she took the bed and rolled it into the clinic herself. "Stay down." She whispered to him, as if he were a dog, and a bad dog at that. She opened another door and pushed him inside. This was a more confined space, he could tell by the shift in the air.

"Wait at least 10 minutes before walking out of here. Try not to stand out too much, please." She told him softly, sounding a little with anxious at the thought of someone seeing how she'd simply chucked a patient into the linen room. A moment later a breeze of air and the sound of the lock clicking signaled him she was gone. He opened one eye and looked around the room, opening the other one as well and sitting up. He looked around the supply closet and chuckled to himself. He'd gotten himself into a very interesting situation now. Let's see how this all would play out.


End file.
